Central Library is hosting Mars through July for Ecorest Art & Reflection in the Bubbler Room. This residency is an extension of the Bubbler’s Our Town Everywhere project, in which the artist-in-residence is encouraged to explore the idea of community portrait through a variety of mediums.
Martina Patterson, known as Mars, is an artist, Master Naturalist, herbalist, environmental educator, and land steward. Through the interdisciplinary art of fiber and eco-mixed media, she explores, highlights, and reflects the phenology of nature and the human experience with the intent to grow, inspire, and educate.
Join Mars for open studio sessions that explore photography and story as fiber from 1–3 p.m. Friday, June 30 and Saturday, July 8. As participants of all ages drop in, they can work individually or in groups weaving together images, found objects, and recyclable materials on a giant community tapestry. They may also contribute written, oral, or drawn responses to provided prompts or document the open studio process through snapshot photography.
There will be two Healing Hikes and Photo Reflection Harvest workshops on Saturday, July 1 and 22, from 1–3 p.m. Registration is required. In this workshop, Mars will facilitate mindfulness community walks through urban nature. Working in teams of two or more, participants can harvest images that inspire reflection around self and environment. Each team will be given a Polaroid camera, and each person will be loaned a sketchbook made by previous participants. Images will be collected to contribute to a larger community art project.
This unique residency is made possible with a gift from Madison Public Library Foundation. Programming and internal support is provided by the library and Bubbler staff. Visit the Bubbler website for more information.